Dependent upon the conditions of the case, some offenses may be considered either felonies or misdemeanors. Severe felonies, for example, assault or sexual abuse, usually refer to behavior that could be a misdemeanor. If an assault causes severe bodily injury, for example, it is often considered as a felony. Simple assault that brings about no permanent injury, however, is a misdemeanor. Similarly, while drug offenses generally are felonies, possession of a small amount of marijuana is a misdemeanor in many states and may require San Francisco criminal law attorneys.
Less serious offenses, such as traffic violations, are often prosecuted as misdemeanors, while they may be felonies in some situations, or the most negligible type of crime, infractions, in others. A traffic violation generally is an infraction if there was no crash, no one was injured, and no property was harmed. The violation becomes a misdemeanor or a felony if anyone is injured, or there was damage of property.